CFP: Symposium on American Identities in Literature and Culture

The First Annual Graham Letters and Culture Symposium invites individual proposals for papers from Blackburn College students and alumni-- as well as graduate students, independent scholars, and academics from across the country and around the world--for the Graham Letters and Culture Symposium celebrating Roy Graham’s fifty years of service to Blackburn College, on Saturday, 5 April 2014 at Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois.

The organizers welcome proposals across a wide spectrum of time or geography or topic; this year’s theme is the creating and contesting of American identities in film, print, and sound.

Individuals who wish to contribute to the symposium should submit 250-word proposals and a one-page CV to Dr. Ren Draya (ren.draya@blackburn.edu, Professor of English & Communications, Blackburn College) and Dr. Ian Aebel (ian.aebel@tamuk.edu; Assistant Professor of History, Texas A&M University-Kingsville) by Friday, 13 December 2013. Presentations should be planned for twenty minutes. All prospective speakers will be notified of a decision by Wednesday, 22 January 2014.

The symposium will take place on the campus of Blackburn College, located in historic Carlinville, Illinois. The town is accessible through the airports in Springfield, Il and St. Louis, MO, as well as by Amtrak train via the Lincoln Service and Texas Eagle. Accommodations will be available at a discounted conference rate for both presenters and attendees.